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The Movie World On Parade
By Louis Pekdrsky
The Hollywood correspondent
oj the Seven Arts Feature Syn
dicate and ‘/'he Southern Israe
lite here reviews the activities
of the great and near-great
Jewish personalities in Amer
ica's Jilm capital.
Hollywood, Calif.
Chronicling the highlights
of the past year in the
doings of the scores of Jew
ish personalities, some of
them prominent, others not .. \ -j ,, ^ ‘*
so prominent, in Holly- hom the s.dewalhs of New )
wood, film capital of the United States, is no
easy task, for the simple reason that the celeb
rities to he mentioned in this article are more
or less in the limelight all the year ’round. To
list their manifold accomplishments in a year’s
time would therefore require more columns
of space than this magazine could afford to
give. Sufficient news has developed among
the better known personalities of the Jewish
faith associated in one way or another with the
k motion picture studios in Hollywood
■ during the past month alone to pro-
v vide more than enough material for one
article.
Marking the tenth anniversary of
the introduction of talking motion
pictures, Jack L. Warner, Vice Presi
dent in charge of production at Warner
Pros. Studio in Burbank, Calif., Hal
B. Wallis, studio manager, Major N.
Levinson and a group of Warner Bros,
executives gathered in August of this
year in a projection room and heard
again the music of the first motion
picture ever made with sound effects.
This was “Don Juan,” with John
Barrymore.
‘‘Don Juan” was not the first talking
picture. That honor is held by “The
Jazz Singer.” A1 Jolson spoke six
words in that film, saying: “How
did you like that, mama?” and sang
a song.
I14J
Commenting on the
tenth anniversary of talk
ing pictures, Jack L.
Warner said to us, after
coming out of the projec
tion room (while in a
theatre a few miles away
capacity audiences were
enjoying “Anthony Ad
verse”): “It’s a far cry
from ‘Don Juan,’ which
was the first motion pic
ture to utilize Yitaphone
ten years ago, to ‘Anthony
Adverse.’ Yet. we are still
pioneering, not only in the
further perfection of the
mechanical phases of talk
ing pictures, but also in
the subject matter of the
pictures themselves, such
as ‘Green Pastures,’ ‘The
Story of Louis Pasteur,’
starring that distinguished
Jewish actor, Paul Muni;
‘A Midsummer Night’s
Dream, staged by that Jewish master of the
drama, Max Reinhardt; ‘China Clipper,’ and
others, len years ago it would have been im
possible to have produced such motion pictures.”
1 he Warner brothers are Ilarrv, Major
Albert, Jack L. and the late Sam Warner.
Sons of a Polish immigrant, the late Benja
min Warner, they started in business in Youngs
town, Ohio. In the winter of 1903-04 the
brothers took a store in Newcastle, Pa., fur
The one and only Warner Brothers
JACK L. HJRRY ALBERT
nished it~with 91 chairs rented from an unde’*
taker and opened it as a motion picture theat
For the next six years they engaged in the rental
and distribution of films, after first tom-in
Ohio and Pennsylvania towns with one T>; g
ture. In 1912 they decided to become pro
ducers, and, after producing what are known
in Hollywood as “quickies,” they onranbJ
Warner Bros. Pictures, Inc.
None of the brothers were present to enjoy
their triumph on the night when A1 Jolson’s
vehicle “The Jazz Singer” was shown on
Broadway, New York. The day before the
first screening of this epoch-making film, which
overnight won both the public and the in
dustry as a whole over to the new talking film
death called Sam Warner. The first all-talk
ing film, “The Lights of New York,” was
released by Warner Bros, in 1928, and by the
end of that year the era of silent films was
ended.
Among the outstanding geniuses of the
Jewish faith identified with the motion picture
industry in the United States is David ().
Selznick. Columns and columns could be
written about this master producer of high
quality screen entertainment, discoverer of
great talent and stars and winner of countless
honors, national, international and world-wide
in their significance, because of his own ability.
Selznick, whose family name is linked with the
finest traditions, progress, growth and history
of the film industry, regards all the countless
honors that have come to him as proof that
motion pictures based on classic literature are
good business as well as good taste.
Geneva, Switzerland, will soon move to
Hollywood for an afternoon for the presenta
tion of the League of Nations 1930 Gold Motion
Picture Award to David (). Selznick for his
production “Little Lord Fauntleroy.” Consuls
of the great nations represented at Geneva
are scheduled to gather at Selznick Interna
tional Studios here for this notable ceremony,
which will mark the first time that a motion
picture executive has been thus singularly
honored.
'Lhe League of Nations’ Motion Picture
Committee, which annually awards a gold
medal for special merit, is sponsoring showings
of the famous young Jewish producer's work
in Geneva, London, Paris and other European
capitals. The League award followed the
international distinction gained by Selznick
when the Mussolini Cup, the Italian govern
ment’s award granted annually for the best
picture made in any country, was given “Anna
Karenina,” which starred Greta Garbo.
Selznick’s discovery of the child star, Freddie
Bartholomew, was the former’s first produc
tion as the president of Selznick International
Pictures. The discovery brought honor to
both of them during the past year, when “David
Copperfield” won a number of
awards. These Selznick awards
include special recognition from
the Legion of Decency at a time when
Hollywood movies were under fire;
the National Board of Review's first
selection among the best pictures of
the year; Parents’ Magazine Award;
Alotion Picture Herald’s Box Office
Magazine Blue Ribbon for the best
family picture; and Modern Screen
Magazine’s first award for exceptional
merit. Parents’ Magazine presented
Selznick with a special medal for
“Little Lord Fauntleroy,” after the
“Copperfield” award had been made.
Selznick’s productions of “Copper-
field” and “Karenina” were included
on the 1935 Honor Roll compiled bv
451 motion picture critics, making
this brilliant Jewish genius the first
producer to be thus honored for two
(Please turn to page 29)
* THE SOUTHERN ISRAELITE